Dynamic provisioning of storage in the cloud

ABSTRACT

A system may dynamically provision an underlying storage implementation for cloud storage, such as cloud block storage services. They system allows for deferral of the storage provisioning process to the time at which a tenant actually requests a storage space.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The technical field generally relates to storage, more specifically, tosystems and methods for cloud storage provisioning.

BACKGROUND

For enterprise storage solutions, vendors drive an appliance-based modelthat typically provide proprietary software and customized hardware tosupport a specific class of applications (e.g., database) or a specificlayer of storage stack (e.g., NFS storage, SAN block storage, etc).However, since many different tenant or storage applications will sharethe same infrastructure in the cloud setting, the underlying storageimplementation should be able to be adapted for active tenants.Unfortunately, despite the fact that many recent technological advanceshave been made in controlling pools of compute, storage, and networkingresources in the cloud, it is still the case that the infrastructureproviders decide hardware configuration before deploying a cloudinfrastructure. For instance, the OpenStack Cinder service, whichgoverns block storage management tasks, mandates a preconfigured storageimplementation before the operation, e.g., through local RAIDconfiguration, vendor appliances/solutions, etc. In a multi-tenant cloudenvironment, in particular, the static nature of the storageprovisioning practice can cause many significant problems for meetingtenant application requirements, which often come later into thepicture.

SUMMARY

Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and apparatuses that enable thedynamic creation of underlying storage implementation in the cloud. Asystem may dynamically provision an underlying storage implementationfor cloud storage, such as cloud block storage services. The systemallows for deferral of the storage provisioning process to the time atwhich a tenant actually requests a storage space. The late binding mayoffer high flexibility to the cloud service providers, thereby resultingin higher utilization. The system may implements mechanisms, such asadmission control and dynamic throttling, to provide quality of serviceon performance among tenant applications. The system can satisfyheterogeneous tenant requests even with considerably limited storageresources and perform a proper admission control for allocating IOPS pervolume.

In an example, dynamic provisioning of backend block storage in thecloud may be done use the following system. A system may include aserver that communicatively connected with a provisioning device. Theprovisioning device may include a processor and a memory coupled withthe processor that effectuates operations. The operations may includereceiving a first request associated with a cloud storage; responsive toreceiving the first request, determining resource availability of aplurality of nodes (which includes the server) to accommodate the firstrequest; creating, based on the resource availability, a new storageimplementation on the server; and receiving information comprising thestatus of the new storage implementation.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore,the claimed subject matter is not limited to limitations that solve anyor all disadvantages noted in any part of this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects of the herein described telecommunications network and systemsand methods for antenna switching based on device position are describedmore fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, which provideexamples. In the following description, for purposes of explanation,numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide anunderstanding of the variations in implementing the disclosedtechnology. However, the instant disclosure may take many differentforms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forthherein. When practical, like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system (IOArbiter) for dynamicprovisioning of backend block storage in the cloud.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary method for dynamic provisioning ofstorage in the cloud.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example flow of dynamic provisioning of a storageimplementation.

FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic of an exemplary network device.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary communication system that provideswireless telecommunication services over wireless communicationnetworks.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary communication system that provideswireless telecommunication services over wireless communicationnetworks.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary telecommunications system in which thedisclosed methods and processes may be implemented.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example system diagram of a radio access networkand a core network.

FIG. 9 depicts an overall block diagram of an example packet-basedmobile cellular network environment, such as a general packet radioservice (GPRS) network.

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary architecture of a GPRS network.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an exemplary public land mobile network(PLMN).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With the advent of virtualization technology, cloud computing realizeson-demand computing. Despite many technological advances in relatedareas, however, it is still the case that the infrastructure providersmust decide hardware configuration before deploying a cloudinfrastructure. This static nature of the storage provisioning practicecan cause many significant problems in meeting tenant requirements,which often come later into the picture. Also, conventionalimplementations usually provide one storage implementation per node.Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and apparatuses that enable thedynamic creation of underlying storage implementation in the cloud,hereinafter the process is generally called IOArbiter. IOArbiter defersstorage provisioning to the time at which a tenant actually requests astorage space. As a result, an underlying storage implementation (e.g.,RAID-5/6 or Ceph storage pool with (6,3) erasure coding) may bematerialized at the volume creation time. IOArbiter can simultaneouslysatisfy a number of different tenant demands, which may not be possiblewith a static configuration. Additionally built-in quality of service(QoS) mechanisms, including admission control and dynamic throttling,help IOArbiter system mitigate a noisy neighbor problem among tenants.The capability of dynamic resource provisioning may be driving factorfor users to adopt cloud technology. A tenant may create a virtualinfrastructure based on their exact needs in a much shorter amount oftime and the amount of provisioned resources may be adjusted anytimefrom anywhere by the tenant. Dynamic resource provisioning may alsoallow cloud infrastructure providers to improve the overall expense(CapEx/OpEx) for running cloud infrastructure.

Table 1 illustrates an example of a conventional solution in view of thedynamic solution discussed herein. Consider two applications. Oneapplication is a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) application andprovides a virtual desktop environment for corporate employees throughVMs (virtual machines) in the cloud. It requires reliable storage, andconsequently demands triple (3×) replication strategy, which is a commonindustry practice. The other application, vCDN, is a virtualized ContentDelivery Network (CDN) application. Unlike the VDI application, vCDNimplements triple redundancy in its application layer. In this case,since the application replicates data across three data centers, it isnot necessary for underlying storage systems to provide any additionalredundancy. Suppose that we first deployed the VDI application to thecloud, and after some time deploy the vCDN application in the same cloudinfrastructure.

TABLE 1 Single Storage Dynamic Application Implementation ProvisioningVDI that requires 3x 3x 3x redundancy from underlying storage systemsvCDN that implements 3x 9x 3x redundancy in the application layer TotalStorage Overhead 12x  6x

Since the architects only knew about the VDI application when theydesigned the infrastructure, they implemented storage systems based onthe triple replication strategy. Even though the vCDN application, whichcomes later into the picture, does not require an additional redundancy,it needs to be deployed into the same infrastructure. As a result, asignificant amount of storage space is unnecessarily consumed, i.e., 12×vs. 6× in the table. In many practical scenarios, it is not easy toavoid this kind of situation due to the rigid nature of storageservices. However, if we can somehow configure the underlying storageparameters dynamically, e.g., this problem might be resolved as depictedin Table I. In this particular example, total storage overhead of asingle storage implementation is twice as much as the dynamicallyimplemented case.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system 110 (IOArbiter) for dynamicprovisioning of backend block storage in the cloud. The components ofsystem 110 may be located on one device or distributed over multipledevices. Scheduler 111 may be communicatively connected with statedatabase 112, storage broker 113, storage manager 114, and storagemanager 115. Storage manager 114 and storage manager 115 may communicatewith storage implementation 116 (e.g., Software RAID) and storageimplementation 117 (Ceph storage pool), respectively. A storageimplementation may be a RAID configuration based on local disks, astorage pool based on a distributed storage systems like Ceph, or astorage vendor solution (e.g., EMC VMAX, all flash arrays such asSolidFire, Pure storage, etc.), among other things. When block storageis requested (e.g., from mobile device 109), which may be throughrepresentational state transfer (REST) application programming interface(API) calls, Scheduler 111 determines which storage node (e.g., server)should handle a given request (e.g., volume creation or volumedeletion). Storage broker 113, storage manager 114, and storage manager115 may report their states to state database 112. Storage broker 113may create a storage implementation (e.g., storage implementation 116 orstorage implementation 117) when there is not one and may create acorresponding storage manager (e.g., storage manager 114 or storagemanager 115) for the storage implementation. Storage manager 114, forexample, may execute actual storage commands, such as creating ordeleting a logical volume at a storage implementation, or attaching ordetaching it from virtual machines (VMs), among other things. IOArbitersystem 110 may use container technology (e.g., Linux containers—LXC) toisolate a newly created control path of a storage manager, such asstorage manager 116. Containers look like VMs. For example, containersmay have private space for processing, may execute commands as root, mayhave a private network interface and IP address, may allow custom routesand iptable rules, or may mount file systems, among other things. Adifference between containers and VMs is that containers may share thehost system's kernel with other containers.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary method 120 for dynamic provisioning ofstorage in the cloud. At step 121, a request associated with cloudstorage is received. The request may include information associated witha storage implementation. The request may include information, such ashow much a volume is replicated (e.g., triple replicated), minimuminput/output operations per second (e.g., 100 minimum input/outputoperations per second—IOPS), or local discs/storage pools (RAID/Ceph),among other things. In an example, the request of step 121 may have aset of user-defined key-value pairs, e.g., {redundancy=5, min-iops=100,iosize=4k, . . . }. Scheduler 111 may receive the request of step 121.At step 122, in response to receiving the request of step 121, there maya determination of resource availability to accommodate the request.Schedule 111 may determine the resource availability. At step 123, basedon the resource availability of step 122, there may be a determinationon whether to engage a storage broker (e.g., create a storageimplementation —step 126) or a storage manager (e.g., alter an existingstorage implementation—step 127).

At step 124, there may be a determination that a storage broker shouldbe engaged because of a lack of a storage implementation (e.g., storageimplementation 116) that may support the request. At step 125, there maybe a determination that a storage manager should be engaged because of astorage implementation (e.g., storage implementation 117) that maysupport the request. At step 126, instructions may be provided togenerate the storage implementation 116 based on the determination ofstep 124. For example, due to the absence of resources, storage broker113, based on the information of the request of step 121, may create anew storage implementation 116. At step 127, instructions may beprovided to alter the storage implementation 117 based on thedetermination of step 125. For example, if storage implementation 117can support the request, scheduler 111 may route the request to theavailable storage manager 115. At step 128, information associated withthe status of the storage implementation 116 or storage implementation117 is received. Once instantiated, storage broker 113 and storagemanager 114 or storage manager 115 may report their states to statedatabase 112, so that scheduler may perform scheduling actions. Amessage from storage broker 113 to state database 112 may haveinformation about raw resources for which the storage broker 113 isresponsible. For example, the information may include the number ofdisks, disk types, or mediums in case of a software RAID-based storageimplementation. The message from storage managers (e.g., storage manager115) may include more specific information associated with storageimplementation 117. The specific information may include the number oflogical volumes already created in storage implementation 117, totalperformance budget and allocated resources, or capacity status, amongother things.

FIG. 3 illustrates dynamic provisioning of a storage implementation andadmission control in consideration of information as shown in Table 2and Table 3 below. FIG. 3 provides a timeline 130 and a plurality ofrequests (request 131-request 137) along the timeline, wherein eachrequest is issued every 90 seconds. The requests may result incorresponding configurations of a node, such as node 141 (10 disks) ornode 142 (7 disks). In this example, the two nodes 141 and 142 have 10and 7 local hard disk drives (HDDs), respectively, each of which has 1TBof storage capacity. Table 2 shows different volume types, types 1-3.For example, a cloud storage provider may have particular types (i.e.,predetermined types) of volumes that it will support in its cloudarchitecture for dynamic provisioning. Table 3 shows what may show someof the information that may be in the requests of FIG. 3, such asrequest 131. For example, request 131 in Table 3 is of a type 1, whichhas RAID configuration with a fixed number of disks (10), and 100gigabytes (G or GB herein) for the requested storage space.

TABLE 2 Volume Type Property of storage implementation Type 1 RAID-5based on 10 disks. Type 2 RAID-6 based on 4 disks. 100 IOPS. Type 3 JBODbased on a single disk.

TABLE 3 Request # 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 Information Type 1 Type 2Type 3 Type 2 Type 2 Type 2 Type 2 100 G 100 G 100 G 100 G 100 G 100 G100 G

With continued reference to FIG. 3, request 131 includes informationsuch as type 1 and 100 GB of storage space. As discussed in FIG. 2,IOArbiter system 110 goes through a plurality of steps to determine howto proceed. Type 1 volume indicates a storage implementation of RAID-5based on 10 disks. Based on the available nodes (node 141 and node 142),only node 141 has the number of disks to implement a volume of type 1.Therefore storage implementation 145 is created with a volume 151 onnode 141. Next, request 132 includes information such as type 2 and 100GB of storage space. Type 2 volume indicates a storage implementation ofRAID-6 based on 4 disks and 100 IOPS. Based on the available nodes (node141 and node 142), only node 142 has the number of disks available toimplement a volume of type 2. It is assume here that node 142 has therequested minimum IOPS as well. Therefore storage implementation 146 iscreated with a volume 152 on node 142 and node 141 remains the same.Request 133 includes information such as type 3 and 100 GB of storagespace. Type 3 volume indicates a storage implementation of JBOD based ona single disk. Based on the available nodes (node 141 and node 142),only node 142 has the number of disks available to implement a volume oftype 3. Therefore storage implementation 147 is created with a volume153 on node 142.

With continued reference to FIG. 3, request 134-request 136 are allrequests for a volume of type 2. Storage implementation 146 is availableand meets the requested criteria; therefore another storageimplementation is not created, but just an additional volume incorrespondence with the storage implementation 146 on node 142. Request137 is an example of a failed request. Request 137 includes informationsuch as type 2 and 100 GB of storage space. Type 2 volume indicates astorage implementation of RAID-6 based on 4 disks and 100 IOPS. Afterconsideration of node 141 and node 142, none meet the criteriarequested. Recall that RAID-6 based on 4 disks (on node 142) has 400IOPS of a total performance budget. Therefore request 137 failed due toa budget constraint. The above in relation to FIG. 3 and Table 2 andTable 3 show that IOArbiter system 110 may dynamically create storageimplementations to satisfy heterogeneous requests (e.g., request 141,request 142, and request 143). In addition, it demonstrates thatIOArbiter system 110 may allocate IOPS correctly (Req. 137 failed due tothe budget constraint). Our offline profiles tell us that we could use400 IOPS (for 4k-block random read/write) per Type-2 storageimplementation as a total performance budget. All of the IOPS areconsumed by previous requests, i.e., each request has a 100 IOPSrequirement and there are 4 of them. Contrary to most conventional cloudstorage architectures that require a different storage implementationper node, the system discussed herein allows for multiple storageimplementations in a node (e.g., node 142). Also note that a node may bea server (one device), it may also be separate devices which may includeservers, drives, controllers, etc.

Discussed below are additional considerations for dynamic provisioningof cloud storage as discussed herein. IOArbiter system 110 may enablethe dynamic creation of underlying storage implementation in the cloud.IOArbiter system 110 may defer the implementation of underlying storageto the volume creation time, i.e., the time at which a tenant actuallyrequests a storage space. To avoid creating an overwhelming designspace, a cloud infrastructure provider using the IOArbiter system 110may define a customized set of storage implementation types so as toincorporate a range of performance and reliability levels, e.g., RAID-5or 6 with a minimum of 200 IOPS, Ceph with (6, 3) or (10, 4) erasurecoding, etc. When a tenant request, e.g., volume creation, is receivedby IOArbiter system 110, IOArbiter system 110 may analyze the requestand automatically create a necessary storage implementation if it is notyet available in the infrastructure, e.g., RAID-5 with 6 disks or Cephwith (10, 4) erasure coding, etc. As a management layer of cloud blockstorage services, IOArbiter system 110 may have service that include a)an ability to perform garbage collection, e.g., reclaiming unused spaceand/or a storage implementation, b) an admission control and dynamicthrottling mechanism that enables per-VM IOPS allocation, and c) acontainerized control plane, which may assist with maintenance.

The cinder-volume uses a local configuration file (cinder.conf) toconfigure and maintain its internal states. IOArbiter inserts anadditional information in that file for our admission control mechanism.When a containerized storage implementation 116 is created, storagebroker 113 may insert pre-computed performance budget into a file insidethe container (e.g., storage manager 114). Those budget numbers may bebased on offline profiles and specific to a given storage implementation114. After that, budget accounting operations may be done by scheduler111 based on the reported information from the containerized storagemanager 114. Dynamic throttling service may be instantiated inside eachcontainer (storage manager 114), run as a daemon process, andperiodically collect block device performance in case of software-RAIDbased storage implementation 116. When an SLA violation is observed, theIOArbiter system 110 may throttle other storage traffic sharing thestorage implementation.

IOArbiter system 110 may allow for late binding and non-intrusiveness.With regard to late binding, with this principle, a storageimplementation may be bound to the cloud infrastructure at the requesttime, i.e., volume creation time. Storage medium may be provided as abunch of raw disks with a state ready to be configured or a vanilla Cephinstallation without any configured storage pools. Then, any relevantstorage implementation will be created when necessary, e.g., a RAID forthe former (bunch of raw disks) example and a storage pool for thelatter (vanilla Ceph install) example. With regard to non-intrusiveness,since IOArbiter is aimed to be deployed in production clusters, it isdesirable to minimize probable impacts on existing components. In anexample scenario, IOArbiter may be implemented as a filter and driverfor a Cinder service rather than making the system as a separatestand-alone service. With this approach, IOArbiter can more naturallyintegrate with existing components, and consequently minimize potentialincompatibility problems. In addition, a container technology may beexploited to isolate a newly created storage implementation. Thisdecision helps ensure a dedicated agent per storage implementation, andthereby isolates the instance from other storage implementations. As aresult, the system administrator may, with greater ease, enable ordisable the storage implementation as needed. Most failures in a givenstorage implementation will not affect other storage implementations.

IOArbiter is intended to be deployed for multi-tenant cloudenvironments. In this context, performance isolation should beappropriately deal with. IOArbiter provides features such as admissioncontrol based on offline profiles and dynamic throttling based onruntime characteristics. With regard to admission control, when a newstorage implementation (e.g., storage implementation 116) is created, acontainerized storage manager 114 may be created along with it. At thattime, IOArbiter system 110 ensures that new storage manager 114 has atotal performance budget for that particular storage implementation. Forinstance, if the storage implementation is based on a single SATA HDD,IOArbiter system 110 allocates approximately 200 for the worst-case4k-block IOPS budget. After that, whenever a new volume creation requestcomes into the system, storage manager 114 manages budgets and providesinformation about the remaining budgets to state database 112. This mayhelp ensure that, if a budget is full for a given storage implementation(e.g., storage implementation 116,no more requests are issued to thecorresponding storage manager 114.

With regard to dynamic throttling, although IOArbiter allocatesperformance, e.g., IOPS, based on the budget, it may be the case thatsome resource interference still happens among the allocated volumetraffic. IOArbiter provides a dynamic throttling mechanism to mitigatethe problem. IOArbiter may monitor runtime statistics (e.g., currentIOPS) of each volume and, if the performance requirement (e.g., minimumIOPS) of a certain volume is violated, IOArbiter suppresses other flowssharing the same storage implementation based on their worst-caserequirements. If no performance requirements are violated, throttlingactions may be disabled.

Garbage collection is discussed below. Since IOArbiter encouragesdynamic provisioning of storage implementation, there exists a concernwith regard to resource fragmentation. To mitigate this problem,IOArbiter may periodically use a garbage collection mechanism. Based onthe mechanism, IOArbiter is able to reclaim unused storage space, ifany, or rebalance the skewed data in already deployed distributedstorage systems. Resource fragmentation can make the infrastructuresignificantly underutilized. In our example in FIG. 3, suppose thatsometime later if all the volumes in the storage implementation 146 aredeleted. Then the underlying disks could be used for other purposes. Tothis end, background garbage collection mechanism referred above willperiodically scan available resources, check the states of each storageimplementation, and reclaim them if necessary. If we do not have such amechanism, 4 disks configured underneath could be wasted until anotherType-2 request comes in to the system.

IOArbiter system may be part of a control plane of cloud block storage.In a large scale cloud infrastructure where thousands of nodes or morecan be deployed, it is preferable to make a service both highlyavailable and scalable. Making a centralized gateway highly available,balancing incoming traffic load uniformly across the availableresources, and handling partitioned service resources are should beconsidered. IOArbiter may exploit an external service that is dedicatedto the aforementioned.

IOArbiter provides additional intelligence for determining which hostcan satisfy a given requirement. In experiments, it turns out theoverhead incurred by IOArbiter system was negligible.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of network device 300 that may be connected toor comprise a component of system 110 or nodes 141 or 142, for example.Network device 300 may comprise hardware or a combination of hardwareand software. The functionality to facilitate telecommunications via atelecommunications network may reside in one or combination of networkdevices 300. Network device 300 depicted in FIG. 4 may represent orperform functionality of an appropriate network device 300, orcombination of network devices 300, such as, for example, a component orvarious components of a cellular broadcast system wireless network, aprocessor, a server, a gateway, a node, a mobile switching center (MSC),a short message service center (SMSC), an automatic location functionserver (ALFS), a gateway mobile location center (GMLC), a radio accessnetwork (RAN), a serving mobile location center (SMLC), or the like, orany appropriate combination thereof. It is emphasized that the blockdiagram depicted in FIG. 4 is exemplary and not intended to imply alimitation to a specific implementation or configuration. Thus, networkdevice 300 may be implemented in a single device or multiple devices(e.g., single server or multiple servers, single gateway or multiplegateways, single controller or multiple controllers). Multiple networkentities may be distributed or centrally located. Multiple networkentities may communicate wirelessly, via hard wire, or any appropriatecombination thereof

Network device 300 may comprise a processor 302 and a memory 304 coupledto processor 302. Memory 304 may contain executable instructions that,when executed by processor 302, cause processor 302 to effectuateoperations associated with mapping wireless signal strength. As evidentfrom the description herein, network device 300 is not to be construedas software per se.

In addition to processor 302 and memory 304, network device 300 mayinclude an input/output system 306. Processor 302, memory 304, andinput/output system 306 may be coupled together (coupling not shown inFIG. 4) to allow communications between them. Each portion of networkdevice 300 may comprise circuitry for performing functions associatedwith each respective portion. Thus, each portion may comprise hardware,or a combination of hardware and software. Accordingly, each portion ofnetwork device 300 is not to be construed as software per se.Input/output system 306 may be capable of receiving or providinginformation from or to a communications device or other network entitiesconfigured for telecommunications. For example input/output system 306may include a wireless communications (e.g., 3G/4G/GPS) card.Input/output system 306 may be capable of receiving or sending videoinformation, audio information, control information, image information,data, or any combination thereof. Input/output system 306 may be capableof transferring information with network device 300. In variousconfigurations, input/output system 306 may receive or provideinformation via any appropriate means, such as, for example, opticalmeans (e.g., infrared), electromagnetic means (e.g., RF, Wi-Fi,Bluetooth®, ZigBee®), acoustic means (e.g., speaker, microphone,ultrasonic receiver, ultrasonic transmitter), or a combination thereof.In an example configuration, input/output system 306 may comprise aWi-Fi finder, a two-way GPS chipset or equivalent, or the like, or acombination thereof.

Input/output system 306 of network device 300 also may contain acommunication connection 308 that allows network device 300 tocommunicate with other devices, network entities, or the like.Communication connection 308 may comprise communication media.Communication media typically embody computer-readable instructions,data structures, program modules or other data in a modulated datasignal such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism and includesany information delivery media. By way of example, and not limitation,communication media may include wired media such as a wired network ordirect-wired connection, or wireless media such as acoustic, RF,infrared, or other wireless media. The term computer-readable media asused herein includes both storage media and communication media.Input/output system 306 also may include an input device 310 such askeyboard, mouse, pen, voice input device, or touch input device.Input/output system 306 may also include an output device 312, such as adisplay, speakers, or a printer.

Processor 302 may be capable of performing functions associated withtelecommunications, such as functions for processing broadcast messages,as described herein. For example, processor 302 may be capable of, inconjunction with any other portion of network device 300, determining atype of broadcast message and acting according to the broadcast messagetype or content, as described herein.

Memory 304 of network device 300 may comprise a storage medium having aconcrete, tangible, physical structure. As is known, a signal does nothave a concrete, tangible, physical structure. Memory 304, as well asany computer-readable storage medium described herein, is not to beconstrued as a signal. Memory 304, as well as any computer-readablestorage medium described herein, is not to be construed as a transientsignal. Memory 304, as well as any computer-readable storage mediumdescribed herein, is not to be construed as a propagating signal. Memory304, as well as any computer-readable storage medium described herein,is to be construed as an article of manufacture.

Memory 304 may store any information utilized in conjunction withtelecommunications. Depending upon the exact configuration or type ofprocessor, memory 304 may include a volatile storage 314 (such as sometypes of RAM), a nonvolatile storage 316 (such as ROM, flash memory), ora combination thereof. Memory 304 may include additional storage (e.g.,a removable storage 318 or a non-removable storage 320) including, forexample, tape, flash memory, smart cards, CD-ROM, DVD, or other opticalstorage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage orother magnetic storage devices, USB-compatible memory, or any othermedium that can be used to store information and that can be accessed bynetwork device 300. Memory 304 may comprise executable instructionsthat, when executed by processor 302, cause processor 302 to effectuateoperations to map signal strengths in an area of interest.

FIG. 5 illustrates a functional block diagram depicting one example ofan LTE-EPS network architecture 400 that may interact with dynamicallyprovisioning a storage implementation for cloud storage as disclosedherein. In particular, the network architecture 400 disclosed herein isreferred to as a modified LTE-EPS architecture 400 to distinguish itfrom a traditional LTE-EPS architecture.

An example modified LTE-EPS architecture 400 is based at least in parton standards developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP),with information available at www.3gpp.org. In one embodiment, theLTE-EPS network architecture 400 includes an access network 402, a corenetwork 404, e.g., an EPC or Common BackBone (CBB) and one or moreexternal networks 406, sometimes referred to as PDN or peer entities.Different external networks 406 can be distinguished from each other bya respective network identifier, e.g., a label according to DNS namingconventions describing an access point to the PDN. Such labels can bereferred to as Access Point Names (APN). External networks 406 caninclude one or more trusted and non-trusted external networks such as aninternet protocol (IP) network 408, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS)network 410, and other networks 412, such as a service network, acorporate network, or the like.

Access network 402 can include an LTE network architecture sometimesreferred to as Evolved Universal mobile Telecommunication systemTerrestrial Radio Access (E UTRA) and evolved UMTS Terrestrial RadioAccess Network (E-UTRAN). Broadly, access network 402 can include one ormore communication devices, commonly referred to as UE 414, and one ormore wireless access nodes, or base stations 416 a, 416 b. Duringnetwork operations, at least one base station 416 communicates directlywith UE 414. Base station 416 can be an evolved Node B (e-NodeB), withwhich UE 414 communicates over the air and wirelessly. UEs 414 caninclude, without limitation, wireless devices, e.g., satellitecommunication systems, portable digital assistants (PDAs), laptopcomputers, tablet devices and other mobile devices (e.g., cellulartelephones, smart appliances, and so on). UEs 414 can connect to eNBs416 when UE 414 is within range according to a corresponding wirelesscommunication technology.

UE 414 generally runs one or more applications that engage in a transferof packets between UE 414 and one or more external networks 406. Suchpacket transfers can include one of downlink packet transfers fromexternal network 406 to UE 414, uplink packet transfers from UE 414 toexternal network 406 or combinations of uplink and downlink packettransfers. Applications can include, without limitation, web browsing,VoIP, streaming media and the like. Each application can pose differentQuality of Service (QoS) requirements on a respective packet transfer.Different packet transfers can be served by different bearers withincore network 404, e.g., according to parameters, such as the QoS.

Core network 404 uses a concept of bearers, e.g., EPS bearers, to routepackets, e.g., IP traffic, between a particular gateway in core network404 and UE 414. A bearer refers generally to an IP packet flow with adefined QoS between the particular gateway and UE 414. Access network402, e.g., E UTRAN, and core network 404 together set up and releasebearers as required by the various applications. Bearers can beclassified in at least two different categories: (i) minimum guaranteedbit rate bearers, e.g., for applications, such as VoIP; and (ii)non-guaranteed bit rate bearers that do not require guarantee bit rate,e.g., for applications, such as web browsing.

In one embodiment, the core network 404 includes various networkentities, such as MME 418, SGW 420, Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 422,Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) 424 and PGW 426. In oneembodiment, MME 418 comprises a control node performing a controlsignaling between various equipment and devices in access network 402and core network 404. The protocols running between UE 414 and corenetwork 404 are generally known as Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocols.

For illustration purposes only, the terms MME 418, SGW 420, HSS 422 andPGW 426, and so on, can be server devices, but may be referred to in thesubject disclosure without the word “server.” It is also understood thatany form of such servers can operate in a device, system, component, orother form of centralized or distributed hardware and software. It isfurther noted that these terms and other terms such as bearer pathsand/or interfaces are terms that can include features, methodologies,and/or fields that may be described in whole or in part by standardsbodies such as the 3GPP. It is further noted that some or allembodiments of the subject disclosure may in whole or in part modify,supplement, or otherwise supersede final or proposed standards publishedand promulgated by 3GPP.

According to traditional implementations of LTE-EPS architectures, SGW420 routes and forwards all user data packets. SGW 420 also acts as amobility anchor for user plane operation during handovers between basestations, e.g., during a handover from first eNB 416 a to second eNB 416b as may be the result of UE 414 moving from one area of coverage, e.g.,cell, to another. SGW 420 can also terminate a downlink data path, e.g.,from external network 406 to UE 414 in an idle state, and trigger apaging operation when downlink data arrives for UE 414. SGW 420 can alsobe configured to manage and store a context for UE 414, e.g., includingone or more of parameters of the IP bearer service and network internalrouting information. In addition, SGW 420 can perform administrativefunctions, e.g., in a visited network, such as collecting informationfor charging (e.g., the volume of data sent to or received from theuser), and/or replicate user traffic, e.g., to support a lawfulinterception. SGW 420 also serves as the mobility anchor forinterworking with other 3GPP technologies such as universal mobiletelecommunication system (UMTS).

At any given time, UE 414 is generally in one of three different states:detached, idle, or active. The detached state is typically a transitorystate in which UE 414 is powered on but is engaged in a process ofsearching and registering with network 402. In the active state, UE 414is registered with access network 402 and has established a wirelessconnection, e.g., radio resource control (RRC) connection, with eNB 416.Whether UE 414 is in an active state can depend on the state of a packetdata session, and whether there is an active packet data session. In theidle state, UE 414 is generally in a power conservation state in whichUE 414 typically does not communicate packets. When UE 414 is idle, SGW420 can terminate a downlink data path, e.g., from one peer entity 406,and triggers paging of UE 414 when data arrives for UE 414. If UE 414responds to the page, SGW 420 can forward the IP packet to eNB 416 a.

HSS 422 can manage subscription-related information for a user of UE414. For example, tHSS 422 can store information such as authorizationof the user, security requirements for the user, quality of service(QoS) requirements for the user, etc. HSS 422 can also hold informationabout external networks 406 to which the user can connect, e.g., in theform of an APN of external networks 406. For example, MME 418 cancommunicate with HSS 422 to determine if UE 414 is authorized toestablish a call, e.g., a voice over IP (VoIP) call before the call isestablished.

PCRF 424 can perform QoS management functions and policy control. PCRF424 is responsible for policy control decision-making, as well as forcontrolling the flow-based charging functionalities in a policy controlenforcement function (PCEF), which resides in PGW 426. PCRF 424 providesthe QoS authorization, e.g., QoS class identifier and bit rates thatdecide how a certain data flow will be treated in the PCEF and ensuresthat this is in accordance with the user's subscription profile.

PGW 426 can provide connectivity between the UE 414 and one or more ofthe external networks 406. In illustrative network architecture 400, PGW426 can be responsible for IP address allocation for UE 414, as well asone or more of QoS enforcement and flow-based charging, e.g., accordingto rules from the PCRF 424. PGW 426 is also typically responsible forfiltering downlink user IP packets into the different QoS-based bearers.In at least some embodiments, such filtering can be performed based ontraffic flow templates. PGW 426 can also perform QoS enforcement, e.g.,for guaranteed bit rate bearers. PGW 426 also serves as a mobilityanchor for interworking with non-3GPP technologies such as CDMA2000.

Within access network 402 and core network 404 there may be variousbearer paths/interfaces, e.g., represented by solid lines 428 and 430.Some of the bearer paths can be referred to by a specific label. Forexample, solid line 428 can be considered an S1-U bearer and solid line432 can be considered an S5/S8 bearer according to LTE-EPS architecturestandards. Without limitation, reference to various interfaces, such asS1, X2, S5, 8, S11 refer to EPS interfaces. In some instances, suchinterface designations are combined with a suffix, e.g., a “U” or a “C”to signify whether the interface relates to a “User plane” or a “Controlplane.” In addition, the core network 404 can include various signalingbearer paths/interfaces, e.g., control plane paths/interfacesrepresented by dashed lines 430, 434, 436, and 438. Some of thesignaling bearer paths may be referred to by a specific label. Forexample, dashed line 430 can be considered as an Sl-MME signalingbearer, dashed line 434 can be considered as an S11 signaling bearer anddashed line 436 can be considered as an S6 a signaling bearer, e.g.,according to LTE-EPS architecture standards. The above bearer paths andsignaling bearer paths are only illustrated as examples and it should benoted that additional bearer paths and signaling bearer paths may existthat are not illustrated.

Also shown is a novel user plane path/interface, referred to as theS1-U+interface 466. In the illustrative example, the S1-U+user planeinterface extends between the eNB 416 a and PGW 426. Notably,S1-U+path/interface does not include SGW 420, a node that is otherwiseinstrumental in configuring and/or managing packet forwarding betweeneNB 416 a and one or more external networks 406 by way of PGW 426. Asdisclosed herein, the S1-U+path/interface facilitates autonomouslearning of peer transport layer addresses by one or more of the networknodes to facilitate a self-configuring of the packet forwarding path. Inparticular, such self-configuring can be accomplished during handoversin most scenarios so as to reduce any extra signaling load on the S/PGWs420, 426 due to excessive handover events.

In some embodiments, PGW 426 is coupled to storage device 440, shown inphantom. Storage device 440 can be integral to one of the network nodes,such as PGW 426, for example, in the form of internal memory and/or diskdrive. It is understood that storage device 440 can include registerssuitable for storing address values. Alternatively or in addition,storage device 440 can be separate from PGW 426, for example, as anexternal hard drive, a flash drive, and/or network storage.

Storage device 440 selectively stores one or more values relevant to theforwarding of packet data. For example, storage device 440 can storeidentities and/or addresses of network entities, such as any of networknodes 418, 420, 422, 424, and 426, eNBs 416 and/or UE 414. In theillustrative example, storage device 440 includes a first storagelocation 442 and a second storage location 444. First storage location442 can be dedicated to storing a Currently Used Downlink address value442. Likewise, second storage location 444 can be dedicated to storing aDefault Downlink Forwarding address value 444. PGW 426 can read and/orwrite values into either of storage locations 442, 444, for example,managing Currently Used Downlink Forwarding address value 442 andDefault Downlink Forwarding address value 444 as disclosed herein.

In some embodiments, the Default Downlink Forwarding address for eachEPS bearer is the SGW S5-U address for each EPS Bearer. The CurrentlyUsed Downlink Forwarding address” for each EPS bearer in PGW 426 can beset every time when PGW 426 receives an uplink packet, e.g., a GTP-Uuplink packet, with a new source address for a corresponding EPS bearer.When UE 414 is in an idle state, the “Current Used Downlink Forwardingaddress” field for each EPS bearer of UE 414 can be set to a “null” orother suitable value.

In some embodiments, the Default Downlink Forwarding address is onlyupdated when PGW 426 receives a new SGW S5-U address in a predeterminedmessage or messages. For example, the Default Downlink Forwardingaddress is only updated when PGW 426 receives one of a Create SessionRequest, Modify Bearer Request and Create Bearer Response messages fromSGW 420.

As values 442, 444 can be maintained and otherwise manipulated on a perbearer basis, it is understood that the storage locations can take theform of tables, spreadsheets, lists, and/or other data structuresgenerally well understood and suitable for maintaining and/or otherwisemanipulate forwarding addresses on a per bearer basis.

It should be noted that access network 402 and core network 404 areillustrated in a simplified block diagram in FIG. 5. In other words,either or both of access network 402 and the core network 404 caninclude additional network elements that are not shown, such as variousrouters, switches and controllers. In addition, although FIG. 5illustrates only a single one of each of the various network elements,it should be noted that access network 402 and core network 404 caninclude any number of the various network elements. For example, corenetwork 404 can include a pool (i.e., more than one) of MMEs 418, SGWs420 or PGWs 426.

In the illustrative example, data traversing a network path between UE414, eNB 416 a, SGW 420, PGW 426 and external network 406 may beconsidered to constitute data transferred according to an end-to-end IPservice. However, for the present disclosure, to properly performestablishment management in LTE-EPS network architecture 400, the corenetwork, data bearer portion of the end-to-end IP service is analyzed.

An establishment may be defined herein as a connection set up requestbetween any two elements within LTE-EPS network architecture 400. Theconnection set up request may be for user data or for signaling. Afailed establishment may be defined as a connection set up request thatwas unsuccessful. A successful establishment may be defined as aconnection set up request that was successful.

In one embodiment, a data bearer portion comprises a first portion(e.g., a data radio bearer 446) between UE 414 and eNB 416 a, a secondportion (e.g., an S1 data bearer 428) between eNB 416 a and SGW 420, anda third portion (e.g., an S5/S8 bearer 432) between SGW 420 and PGW 426.Various signaling bearer portions are also illustrated in FIG. 5. Forexample, a first signaling portion (e.g., a signaling radio bearer 448)between UE 414 and eNB 416 a, and a second signaling portion (e.g., Slsignaling bearer 430) between eNB 416 a and MME 418.

In at least some embodiments, the data bearer can include tunneling,e.g., IP tunneling, by which data packets can be forwarded in anencapsulated manner, between tunnel endpoints. Tunnels, or tunnelconnections can be identified in one or more nodes of network 400, e.g.,by one or more of tunnel endpoint identifiers, an IP address and a userdatagram protocol port number. Within a particular tunnel connection,payloads, e.g., packet data, which may or may not include protocolrelated information, are forwarded between tunnel endpoints.

An example of first tunnel solution 450 includes a first tunnel 452 abetween two tunnel endpoints 454 a and 456 a, and a second tunnel 452 bbetween two tunnel endpoints 454 b and 456 b. In the illustrativeexample, first tunnel 452 a is established between eNB 416 a and SGW420. Accordingly, first tunnel 452 a includes a first tunnel endpoint454 a corresponding to an S1-U address of eNB 416 a (referred to hereinas the eNB S1-U address), and second tunnel endpoint 456 a correspondingto an S1-U address of SGW 420 (referred to herein as the SGW S1-Uaddress). Likewise, second tunnel 452 b includes first tunnel endpoint454 b corresponding to an S5-U address of SGW 420 (referred to herein asthe SGW S5-U address), and second tunnel endpoint 456 b corresponding toan S5-U address of PGW 426 (referred to herein as the PGW S5-U address).

In at least some embodiments, first tunnel solution 450 is referred toas a two tunnel solution, e.g., according to the GPRS Tunneling ProtocolUser Plane (GTPv1-U based), as described in 3GPP specification TS29.281, incorporated herein in its entirety. It is understood that oneor more tunnels are permitted between each set of tunnel end points. Forexample, each subscriber can have one or more tunnels, e.g., one foreach PDP context that they have active, as well as possibly havingseparate tunnels for specific connections with different quality ofservice requirements, and so on.

An example of second tunnel solution 458 includes a single or directtunnel 460 between tunnel endpoints 462 and 464. In the illustrativeexample, direct tunnel 460 is established between eNB 416 a and PGW 426,without subjecting packet transfers to processing related to SGW 420.Accordingly, direct tunnel 460 includes first tunnel endpoint 462corresponding to the eNB S1-U address, and second tunnel endpoint 464corresponding to the PGW S5-U address. Packet data received at eitherend can be encapsulated into a payload and directed to the correspondingaddress of the other end of the tunnel. Such direct tunneling avoidsprocessing, e.g., by SGW 420 that would otherwise relay packets betweenthe same two endpoints, e.g., according to a protocol, such as the GTP-Uprotocol.

In some scenarios, direct tunneling solution 458 can forward user planedata packets between eNB 416 a and PGW 426, by way of SGW 420. That is,SGW 420 can serve a relay function, by relaying packets between twotunnel endpoints 416 a, 426. In other scenarios, direct tunnelingsolution 458 can forward user data packets between eNB 416 a and PGW426, by way of the S1U+interface, thereby bypassing SGW 420.

Generally, UE 414 can have one or more bearers at any one time. Thenumber and types of bearers can depend on applications, defaultrequirements, and so on. It is understood that the techniques disclosedherein, including the configuration, management and use of varioustunnel solutions 450, 458, can be applied to the bearers on anindividual bases. That is, if user data packets of one bearer, say abearer associated with a VoIP service of UE 414, then the forwarding ofall packets of that bearer are handled in a similar manner. Continuingwith this example, the same UE 414 can have another bearer associatedwith it through the same eNB 416 a. This other bearer, for example, canbe associated with a relatively low rate data session forwarding userdata packets through core network 404 simultaneously with the firstbearer. Likewise, the user data packets of the other bearer are alsohandled in a similar manner, without necessarily following a forwardingpath or solution of the first bearer. Thus, one of the bearers may beforwarded through direct tunnel 458; whereas, another one of the bearersmay be forwarded through a two-tunnel solution 450.

FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system 500 within which a set of instructions,when executed, may cause the machine to perform dynamically provisioninga storage implementation for cloud storage as disclosed herein. One ormore instances of the machine can operate, for example, as node 141,node 142, system 110 (or components thereof), processor 302, UE 414, eNB416, MME 418, SGW 420, HSS 422, PCRF 424, PGW 426 and other devices ofFIG. 1, FIG. 3, and FIG. 5. In some embodiments, the machine may beconnected (e.g., using a network 502) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient user machine in a server-client user network environment, or as apeer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet, a smart phone, a laptop computer, adesktop computer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge,or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a communication device of the subject disclosureincludes broadly any electronic device that provides voice, video ordata communication. Further, while a single machine is illustrated, theterm “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machinesthat individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) ofinstructions to perform any one or more of the methods discussed herein.

Computer system 500 may include a processor (or controller) 504 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU)), a graphics processing unit (GPU, orboth), a main memory 506 and a static memory 508, which communicate witheach other via a bus 510. The computer system 500 may further include adisplay unit 512 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel, ora solid state display). Computer system 500 may include an input device514 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 516 (e.g., a mouse), adisk drive unit 518, a signal generation device 520 (e.g., a speaker orremote control) and a network interface device 522. In distributedenvironments, the embodiments described in the subject disclosure can beadapted to utilize multiple display units 512 controlled by two or morecomputer systems 500. In this configuration, presentations described bythe subject disclosure may in part be shown in a first of display units512, while the remaining portion is presented in a second of displayunits 512. Display units 512 may display information associated withdynamic provisioning of cloud storage as discussed with regard to FIG.1-FIG. 3 (e.g., step 128).

The disk drive unit 518 may include a tangible computer-readable storagemedium 524 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g.,software 526) embodying any one or more of the methods or functionsdescribed herein, including those methods illustrated above.Instructions 526 may also reside, completely or at least partially,within main memory 506, static memory 508, or within processor 504during execution thereof by the computer system 500. Main memory 506 andprocessor 504 also may constitute tangible computer-readable storagemedia.

As shown in FIG. 7, telecommunication system 600 may include wirelesstransmit/receive units (WTRUs) 602, a RAN 604, a core network 606, apublic switched telephone network (PSTN) 608, the Internet 610, or othernetworks 612, though it will be appreciated that the disclosed examplescontemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, or networkelements. Each WTRU 602 may be any type of device configured to operateor communicate in a wireless environment. For example, a WTRU maycomprise a mobile device 109 that requests cloud storage provisioning ofsystem 110, a mobile device, network device 300, or the like, or anycombination thereof. By way of example, WTRUs 602 may be configured totransmit or receive wireless signals and may include a UE, a mobilestation, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a pager, a cellulartelephone, a PDA, a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personalcomputer, a wireless sensor, consumer electronics, or the like. It isunderstood that the exemplary devices above may overlap in theirfunctionality and the terms are not necessarily mutually exclusive.WTRUs 602 may be configured to transmit or receive wireless signals overan air interface 614.

Telecommunication system 600 may also include one or more base stations616. Each of base stations 616 may be any type of device configured towirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 602 to facilitateaccess to one or more communication networks, such as core network 606,PTSN 608, Internet 610, or other networks 612. By way of example, basestations 616 may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNodeB, a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, a site controller, an access point(AP), a wireless router, or the like. While base stations 616 are eachdepicted as a single element, it will be appreciated that base stations616 may include any number of interconnected base stations or networkelements.

RAN 604 may include one or more base stations 616, along with othernetwork elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), aradio network controller (RNC), or relay nodes. One or more basestations 616 may be configured to transmit or receive wireless signalswithin a particular geographic region, which may be referred to as acell (not shown). The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. Forexample, the cell associated with base station 616 may be divided intothree sectors such that base station 616 may include three transceivers:one for each sector of the cell. In another example, base station 616may employ multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology and,therefore, may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of thecell.

Base stations 616 may communicate with one or more of WTRUs 602 over airinterface 614, which may be any suitable wireless communication link(e.g., RF, microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), or visiblelight). Air interface 614 may be established using any suitable radioaccess technology (RAT).

More specifically, as noted above, telecommunication system 600 may be amultiple access system and may employ one or more channel accessschemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, or the like. Forexample, base station 616 in RAN 604 and WTRUs 602 connected to RAN 604may implement a radio technology such as Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA) thatmay establish air interface 614 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA mayinclude communication protocols, such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA)or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink PacketAccess (HSDPA) or High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

As another example base station 616 and WTRUs 602 that are connected toRAN 604 may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTSTerrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish air interface 614using LTE or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A).

Optionally base station 616 and WTRUs 602 connected to RAN 604 mayimplement radio technologies such as IEEE 602.16 (i.e., WorldwideInteroperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1x,CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95(IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), GSM, Enhanced Data rates for GSMEvolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), or the like.

Base station 616 may be a wireless router, Home Node B, Home eNode B, oraccess point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT forfacilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a placeof business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, or the like. For example, basestation 616 and associated WTRUs 602 may implement a radio technologysuch as IEEE 602.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN).As another example, base station 616 and associated WTRUs 602 mayimplement a radio technology such as IEEE 602.15 to establish a wirelesspersonal area network (WPAN). In yet another example, base station 616and associated WTRUs 602 may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA,CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell.As shown in FIG. 7, base station 616 may have a direct connection toInternet 610. Thus, base station 616 may not be required to accessInternet 610 via core network 606.

RAN 604 may be in communication with core network 606, which may be anytype of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and/orvoice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more WTRUs 602.For example, core network 606 may provide call control, billingservices, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internetconnectivity, video distribution or high-level security functions, suchas user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 7, it will beappreciated that RAN 604 or core network 606 may be in direct orindirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as RAN604 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected toRAN 604, which may be utilizing an E-UTRA radio technology, core network606 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employinga GSM radio technology.

Core network 606 may also serve as a gateway for WTRUs 602 to accessPSTN 608, Internet 610, or other networks 612. PSTN 608 may includecircuit-switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephoneservice (POTS). For LTE core networks, core network 606 may use IMS core614 to provide access to PSTN 608. Internet 610 may include a globalsystem of interconnected computer networks or devices that use commoncommunication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol(TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP), or IP in the TCP/IP internetprotocol suite. Other networks 612 may include wired or wirelesscommunications networks owned or operated by other service providers.For example, other networks 612 may include another core networkconnected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as RAN 604or a different RAT.

Some or all WTRUs 602 in telecommunication system 600 may includemulti-mode capabilities. That is, WTRUs 602 may include multipletransceivers for communicating with different wireless networks overdifferent wireless links. For example, one or more WTRUs 602 may beconfigured to communicate with base station 616, which may employ acellular-based radio technology, and with base station 616, which mayemploy an IEEE 802 radio technology.

FIG. 8 is an example system 400 including RAN 604 and core network 606.As noted above, RAN 604 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology tocommunicate with WTRUs 602 over air interface 614. RAN 604 may also bein communication with core network 606.

RAN 604 may include any number of eNode-Bs 702 while remainingconsistent with the disclosed technology. One or more eNode-Bs 702 mayinclude one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 602over air interface 614. Optionally, eNode-Bs 702 may implement MIMOtechnology. Thus, one of eNode-Bs 702, for example, may use multipleantennas to transmit wireless signals to, or receive wireless signalsfrom, one of WTRUs 602.

Each of eNode-Bs 702 may be associated with a particular cell (notshown) and may be configured to handle radio resource managementdecisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the uplink ordownlink, or the like. As shown in FIG. 8 eNode-Bs 702 may communicatewith one another over an X2 interface.

Core network 606 shown in FIG. 8 may include a mobility managementgateway or entity (MME) 704, a serving gateway 706, or a packet datanetwork (PDN) gateway 708. While each of the foregoing elements aredepicted as part of core network 606, it will be appreciated that anyone of these elements may be owned or operated by an entity other thanthe core network operator.

MME 704 may be connected to each of eNode-Bs 702 in RAN 604 via an S1interface and may serve as a control node. For example, MME 704 may beresponsible for authenticating users of WTRUs 602, bearer activation ordeactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initialattach of WTRUs 602, or the like. MME 704 may also provide a controlplane function for switching between RAN 604 and other RANs (not shown)that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM or WCDMA.

Serving gateway 706 may be connected to each of eNode-Bs 702 in RAN 604via the Si interface. Serving gateway 706 may generally route or forwarduser data packets to or from the WTRUs 602. Serving gateway 706 may alsoperform other functions, such as anchoring user planes duringinter-eNode B handovers, triggering paging when downlink data isavailable for WTRUs 602, managing or storing contexts of WTRUs 602, orthe like.

Serving gateway 706 may also be connected to PDN gateway 708, which mayprovide WTRUs 602 with access to packet-switched networks, such asInternet 610, to facilitate communications between WTRUs 602 andIP-enabled devices.

Core network 606 may facilitate communications with other networks. Forexample, core network 606 may provide WTRUs 602 with access tocircuit-switched networks, such as PSTN 608, such as through IMS core614, to facilitate communications between WTRUs 602 and traditionalland-line communications devices. In addition, core network 606 mayprovide the WTRUs 602 with access to other networks 612, which mayinclude other wired or wireless networks that are owned or operated byother service providers. Other networks 612 may be the cloud network forstorage associated with dynamic provisioning as discussed herein.

FIG. 9 depicts an overall block diagram of an example packet-basedmobile cellular network environment, such as a GPRS network that mayinteract with the dynamic provisioning as discussed herein. In theexample packet-based mobile cellular network environment shown in FIG.9, there are a plurality of base station subsystems (BSS) 800 (only oneis shown), each of which comprises a base station controller (BSC) 802serving a plurality of BTSs, such as BTSs 804, 806, 808. BTSs 804, 806,808 are the access points where users of packet-based mobile devicesbecome connected to the wireless network. In example fashion, the packettraffic originating from mobile devices is transported via anover-the-air interface to BTS 808, and from BTS 808 to BSC 802. Basestation subsystems, such as BSS 800, are a part of internal frame relaynetwork 810 that can include a service GPRS support nodes (SGSN), suchas SGSN 812 or SGSN 814. Each SGSN 812, 814 is connected to an internalpacket network 816 through which SGSN 812, 814 can route data packets toor from a plurality of gateway GPRS support nodes (GGSN) 818, 820, 822.As illustrated, SGSN 814 and GGSNs 818, 820, 822 are part of internalpacket network 816. GGSNs 818, 820, 822 mainly provide an interface toexternal IP networks such as PLMN 824, corporate intranets/internets826, or Fixed-End System (FES) or the public Internet 828. Asillustrated, subscriber corporate network 826 may be connected to GGSN820 via a firewall 830. PLMN 824 may be connected to GGSN 820 via aboarder gateway router (BGR) 832. A Remote Authentication Dial-In UserService (RADIUS) server 834 may be used for caller authentication when auser calls corporate network 826.

Generally, there may be a several cell sizes in a network, referred toas macro, micro, pico, femto or umbrella cells. The coverage area ofeach cell is different in different environments. Macro cells can beregarded as cells in which the base station antenna is installed in amast or a building above average roof top level. Micro cells are cellswhose antenna height is under average roof top level. Micro cells aretypically used in urban areas. Pico cells are small cells having adiameter of a few dozen meters. Pico cells are used mainly indoors.Femto cells have the same size as pico cells, but a smaller transportcapacity. Femto cells are used indoors, in residential or small businessenvironments. On the other hand, umbrella cells are used to covershadowed regions of smaller cells and fill in gaps in coverage betweenthose cells.

FIG. 10 illustrates an architecture of a typical GPRS network 900 thatmay be connected with or associated with system 110 for dynamicprovisioning of cloud storage, as discussed herein. The architecturedepicted in FIG. 10 may be segmented into four groups: users 902, RAN904, core network 906, and interconnect network 908. Users 902 comprisea plurality of end users, who each may use one or more devices 910. Notethat device 910 is referred to as a mobile subscriber (MS) in thedescription of network shown in FIG. 10. In an example, device 910comprises a communications device (e.g., mobile device 109 forrequesting provisioning, network device 300, any of detected devices500, second device 508, access device 604, access device 606, accessdevice 608, access device 610 or the like, or any combination thereof).Radio access network 904 comprises a plurality of BSSs such as BSS 912,which includes a BTS 914 and a BSC 916. Core network 906 may include ahost of various network elements. As illustrated in FIG. 10, corenetwork 906 may comprise MSC 918, service control point (SCP) 920,gateway MSC (GMSC) 922, SGSN 924, home location register (HLR) 926,authentication center (AuC) 928, domain name system (DNS) server 930,and GGSN 932. Interconnect network 908 may also comprise a host ofvarious networks or other network elements. As illustrated in FIG. 10,interconnect network 908 comprises a PSTN 934, an FES/Internet 936, afirewall 1038, or a corporate network 940.

An MSC can be connected to a large number of BSCs. At MSC 918, forinstance, depending on the type of traffic, the traffic may be separatedin that voice may be sent to PSTN 934 through GMSC 922, or data may besent to SGSN 924, which then sends the data traffic to GGSN 932 forfurther forwarding.

When MSC 918 receives call traffic, for example, from BSC 916, it sendsa query to a database hosted by SCP 920, which processes the request andissues a response to MSC 918 so that it may continue call processing asappropriate.

HLR 926 is a centralized database for users to register to the GPRSnetwork. HLR 926 stores static information about the subscribers such asthe International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), subscribedservices, or a key for authenticating the subscriber. HLR 926 alsostores dynamic subscriber information such as the current location ofthe MS. Associated with HLR 926 is AuC 928, which is a database thatcontains the algorithms for authenticating subscribers and includes theassociated keys for encryption to safeguard the user input forauthentication.

In the following, depending on context, “mobile subscriber” or “MS”sometimes refers to the end user and sometimes to the actual portabledevice, such as a mobile device, used by an end user of the mobilecellular service. When a mobile subscriber turns on his or her mobiledevice, the mobile device goes through an attach process by which themobile device attaches to an SGSN of the GPRS network. In FIG. 10, whenMS 910 initiates the attach process by turning on the networkcapabilities of the mobile device, an attach request is sent by MS 910to SGSN 924. The SGSN 924 queries another SGSN, to which MS 910 wasattached before, for the identity of MS 910. Upon receiving the identityof MS 910 from the other SGSN, SGSN 924 requests more information fromMS 910. This information is used to authenticate MS 910 together withthe information provided by HLR 926. Once verified, SGSN 924 sends alocation update to HLR 926 indicating the change of location to a newSGSN, in this case SGSN 924. HLR 926 notifies the old SGSN, to which MS910 was attached before, to cancel the location process for MS 910. HLR926 then notifies SGSN 924 that the location update has been performed.At this time, SGSN 924 sends an Attach Accept message to MS 910, whichin turn sends an Attach Complete message to SGSN 924.

Next, MS 910 establishes a user session with the destination network,corporate network 940, by going through a Packet Data Protocol (PDP)activation process. Briefly, in the process, MS 910 requests access tothe Access Point Name (APN), for example, UPS.com, and SGSN 924 receivesthe activation request from MS 910. SGSN 924 then initiates a DNS queryto learn which GGSN 932 has access to the UPS.com APN. The DNS query issent to a DNS server within core network 906, such as DNS server 930,which is provisioned to map to one or more GGSNs in core network 906.Based on the APN, the mapped GGSN 932 can access requested corporatenetwork 940. SGSN 924 then sends to GGSN 932 a Create PDP ContextRequest message that contains necessary information. GGSN 932 sends aCreate PDP Context Response message to SGSN 924, which then sends anActivate PDP Context Accept message to MS 910.

Once activated, data packets of the call made by MS 910 can then gothrough RAN 904, core network 906, and interconnect network 908, in aparticular FES/Internet 936 and firewall 1038, to reach corporatenetwork 940.

FIG. 11 illustrates a PLMN block diagram view of an example architectureof a telecommunications system that may be used by system 110 withregard to dynamic provisioning. In FIG. 11, solid lines may representuser traffic signals, and dashed lines may represent support signaling.MS 1002 is the physical equipment used by the PLMN subscriber. Forexample, node 141, node 142, mobile device 109, one or more componentsof system 110, network device 300, the like, or any combination thereofmay serve as MS 1002. MS 1002 may be one of, but not limited to, acellular telephone, a cellular telephone in combination with anotherelectronic device or any other wireless mobile communication device.

MS 1002 may communicate wirelessly with BSS 1004. BSS 1004 contains BSC1006 and a BTS 1008. BSS 1004 may include a single BSC 1006/BTS 1008pair (base station) or a system of BSC/BTS pairs that are part of alarger network. BSS 1004 is responsible for communicating with MS 1002and may support one or more cells. BSS 1004 is responsible for handlingcellular traffic and signaling between MS 1002 and a core network 1010.Typically, BSS 1004 performs functions that include, but are not limitedto, digital conversion of speech channels, allocation of channels tomobile devices, paging, or transmission/reception of cellular signals.

Additionally, MS 1002 may communicate wirelessly with RNS 1012. RNS 1012contains a Radio Network Controller (RNC) 1014 and one or more Nodes B1016. RNS 1012 may support one or more cells. RNS 1012 may also includeone or more RNC 1014/Node B 1016 pairs or alternatively a single RNC1014 may manage multiple Nodes B 1016. RNS 1012 is responsible forcommunicating with MS 1002 in its geographically defined area. RNC 1014is responsible for controlling Nodes B 1016 that are connected to it andis a control element in a UMTS radio access network. RNC 1014 performsfunctions such as, but not limited to, load control, packet scheduling,handover control, security functions, or controlling MS 1002 access tocore network 1010.

An E-UTRA Network (E-UTRAN) 1018 is a RAN that provides wireless datacommunications for MS 1002 and UE 1024. E-UTRAN 1018 provides higherdata rates than traditional UMTS. It is part of the LTE upgrade formobile networks, and later releases meet the requirements of theInternational Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) Advanced and are commonlyknown as a 4G networks. E-UTRAN 1018 may include of series of logicalnetwork components such as E-UTRAN Node B (eNB) 1020 and E-UTRAN Node B(eNB) 1022. E-UTRAN 1018 may contain one or more eNBs. User equipment(UE) 1024 may be any mobile device capable of connecting to E-UTRAN 1018including, but not limited to, a personal computer, laptop, mobilephone, wireless router, or other device capable of wireless connectivityto E-UTRAN 1018. The improved performance of the E-UTRAN 1018 relativeto a typical UMTS network allows for increased bandwidth, spectralefficiency, and functionality including, but not limited to, voice,high-speed applications, large data transfer or IPTV, while stillallowing for full mobility.

Typically MS 1002 may communicate with any or all of BSS 1004, RNS 1012,or E-UTRAN 1018. In a illustrative system, each of BSS 1004, RNS 1012,and E-UTRAN 1018 may provide MS 1002 with access to core network 1010.Core network 1010 may include of a series of devices that route data andcommunications between end users. Core network 1010 may provide networkservice functions to users in the circuit switched (CS) domain or thepacket switched (PS) domain. The CS domain refers to connections inwhich dedicated network resources are allocated at the time ofconnection establishment and then released when the connection isterminated. The PS domain refers to communications and data transfersthat make use of autonomous groupings of bits called packets. Eachpacket may be routed, manipulated, processed or handled independently ofall other packets in the PS domain and does not require dedicatednetwork resources.

The circuit-switched MGW function (CS-MGW) 1026 is part of core network1010, and interacts with VLR/MSC server 1028 and GMSC server 1030 inorder to facilitate core network 1010 resource control in the CS domain.Functions of CS-MGW 1026 include, but are not limited to, mediaconversion, bearer control, payload processing or other mobile networkprocessing such as handover or anchoring. CS-MGW 1026 may receiveconnections to MS 1002 through BSS 1004 or RNS 1012.

SGSN 1032 stores subscriber data regarding MS 1002 in order tofacilitate network functionality. SGSN 1032 may store subscriptioninformation such as, but not limited to, the IMSI, temporary identities,or PDP addresses. SGSN 1032 may also store location information such as,but not limited to, GGSN address for each GGSN 1034 where an active PDPexists. GGSN 1034 may implement a location register function to storesubscriber data it receives from SGSN 1032 such as subscription orlocation information.

Serving gateway (S-GW) 1036 is an interface which provides connectivitybetween E-UTRAN 1018 and core network 1010. Functions of S-GW 1036include, but are not limited to, packet routing, packet forwarding,transport level packet processing, or user plane mobility anchoring forinter-network mobility. PCRF 1038 uses information gathered from P-GW1036, as well as other sources, to make applicable policy and chargingdecisions related to data flows, network resources or other networkadministration functions. PDN gateway (PDN-GW) 1040 may provideuser-to-services connectivity functionality including, but not limitedto, GPRS/EPC network anchoring, bearer session anchoring and control, orIP address allocation for PS domain connections.

HSS 1042 is a database for user information and stores subscription dataregarding MS 1002 or UE 1024 for handling calls or data sessions.Networks may contain one HSS 1042 or more if additional resources arerequired. Example data stored by HSS 1042 include, but is not limitedto, user identification, numbering or addressing information, securityinformation, or location information. HSS 1042 may also provide call orsession establishment procedures in both the PS and CS domains.

VLR/MSC Server 1028 provides user location functionality. When MS 1002enters a new network location, it begins a registration procedure. A MSCserver for that location transfers the location information to the VLRfor the area. A VLR and MSC server may be located in the same computingenvironment, as is shown by VLR/MSC server 1028, or alternatively may belocated in separate computing environments. A VLR may contain, but isnot limited to, user information such as the IMSI, the Temporary MobileStation Identity (TMSI), the Local Mobile Station Identity (LMSI), thelast known location of the mobile station, or the SGSN where the mobilestation was previously registered. The MSC server may containinformation such as, but not limited to, procedures for MS 1002registration or procedures for handover of MS 1002 to a differentsection of core network 1010. GMSC server 1030 may serve as a connectionto alternate GMSC servers for other MSs in larger networks.

EIR 1044 is a logical element which may store the IMEI for MS 1002. Userequipment may be classified as either “white listed” or “black listed”depending on its status in the network. If MS 1002 is stolen and put touse by an unauthorized user, it may be registered as “black listed” inEIR 1044, preventing its use on the network. A MME 1046 is a controlnode which may track MS 1002 or UE 1024 if the devices are idle.Additional functionality may include the ability of MME 1046 to contactidle MS 1002 or UE 1024 if retransmission of a previous session isrequired.

As described herein, a telecommunications system wherein management andcontrol utilizing a software designed network (SDN) and a simple IP arebased, at least in part, on user equipment, may provide a wirelessmanagement and control framework that enables common wireless managementand control, such as mobility management, radio resource management,QoS, load balancing, etc., across many wireless technologies, e.g. LTE,Wi-Fi, and future 5G access technologies; decoupling the mobilitycontrol from data planes to let them evolve and scale independently;reducing network state maintained in the network based on user equipmenttypes to reduce network cost and allow massive scale; shortening cycletime and improving network upgradability; flexibility in creatingend-to-end services based on types of user equipment and applications,thus improve customer experience; or improving user equipment powerefficiency and battery life—especially for simple M2M devices—throughenhanced wireless management.

While examples of a telecommunications system in which emergency alertscan be processed and managed have been described in connection withvarious computing devices/processors, the underlying concepts may beapplied to any computing device, processor, or system capable offacilitating a telecommunications system. The various techniquesdescribed herein may be implemented in connection with hardware orsoftware or, where appropriate, with a combination of both. Thus, themethods and devices may take the form of program code (i.e.,instructions) embodied in concrete, tangible, storage media having aconcrete, tangible, physical structure. Examples of tangible storagemedia include floppy diskettes, CD-ROMs, DVDs, hard drives, or any othertangible machine-readable storage medium (computer-readable storagemedium). Thus, a computer-readable storage medium is not a signal. Acomputer-readable storage medium is not a transient signal. Further, acomputer-readable storage medium is not a propagating signal. Acomputer-readable storage medium as described herein is an article ofmanufacture. When the program code is loaded into and executed by amachine, such as a computer, the machine becomes an device fortelecommunications. In the case of program code execution onprogrammable computers, the computing device will generally include aprocessor, a storage medium readable by the processor (includingvolatile or nonvolatile memory or storage elements), at least one inputdevice, and at least one output device. The program(s) can beimplemented in assembly or machine language, if desired. The languagecan be a compiled or interpreted language, and may be combined withhardware implementations.

In the context of what is discussed herein with regard to computerstorage, the standard RAID levels comprise a basic set of RAID(redundant array of independent disks) configurations that employ thetechniques of striping, mirroring, or parity to create large reliabledata stores from multiple general-purpose computer hard disk drives(HDDs).

The methods and devices associated with a telecommunications system asdescribed herein also may be practiced via communications embodied inthe form of program code that is transmitted over some transmissionmedium, such as over electrical wiring or cabling, through fiber optics,or via any other form of transmission, wherein, when the program code isreceived and loaded into and executed by a machine, such as an EPROM, agate array, a programmable logic device (PLD), a client computer, or thelike, the machine becomes an device for implementing telecommunicationsas described herein. When implemented on a general-purpose processor,the program code combines with the processor to provide a unique devicethat operates to invoke the functionality of a telecommunicationssystem.

While a telecommunications system has been described in connection withthe various examples of the various figures, it is to be understood thatother similar implementations may be used or modifications and additionsmay be made to the described examples of a telecommunications systemwithout deviating therefrom. For example, one skilled in the art willrecognize that a telecommunications system as described in the instantapplication may apply to any environment, whether wired or wireless, andmay be applied to any number of such devices connected via acommunications network and interacting across the network. Therefore, atelecommunications system as described herein should not be limited toany single example, but rather should be construed in breadth and scopein accordance with the appended claims.

In describing preferred methods, systems, or apparatuses of the subjectmatter of the present disclosure—dynamic provisioning of cloudstorage—as illustrated in the Figures, specific terminology is employedfor the sake of clarity. The claimed subject matter, however, is notintended to be limited to the specific terminology so selected, and itis to be understood that each specific element includes all technicalequivalents that operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similarpurpose.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention,including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the invention, including making and using any devices orsystems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope ofthe invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examplesthat occur to those skilled in the art (e.g., skipping steps, combiningsteps, or adding steps between exemplary methods disclosed herein). Suchother examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if theyhave structural elements that do not differ from the literal language ofthe claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements withinsubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.

What is claimed:
 1. An apparatus comprising: a processor; and a memorycoupled with the processor, the memory comprising executableinstructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor toeffectuate operations comprising: receiving a first request associatedwith a cloud storage, wherein the first request comprises a minimumnumber of local discs; responsive to receiving the first request,determining whether to engage a storage broker, wherein the determiningwhether to engage the storage broker comprises determining whether astorage implementation exists that can support the first request; and inresponse to a nonexistence of the storage implementation, engaging thestorage broker, and creating, by the storage broker, a new storageimplementation to support the request.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1,further operations comprising: receiving a second request associatedwith the cloud storage; responsive to receiving the second request,determining whether to engage a storage manager, wherein the storagemanager alters an existing storage implementation, wherein thedetermining whether to engage the storage manager comprises determiningresource availability of a plurality of nodes to accommodate the secondrequest; based on the resource availability of the existing storageimplementation, engaging the storage manager and altering the existingstorage implementation; and receiving information comprising the statusof the existing storage implementation.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2,wherein the information comprises a number of logical volumes created inthe existing storage implementation.
 4. The apparatus of claim 2,wherein the altering of the existing storage implementation comprisescreating a logical volume at the storage implementation that is based oninformation from the second request.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the first request comprises a minimum replication of a volume.6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the new storage implementationcomprises redundant array of independent disks (RAID), just a bunch ofdisks (JBOD), or Ceph.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1, further operationscomprising receiving information comprising the status of the newstorage implementation.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the firstrequest comprises a minimum number of storage pools.
 9. The apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the first request comprises a type and storage amount.10. A system comprising: server; and a provisioning devicecommunicatively connected with the server, the provisioning devicecomprising: a processor; and a memory coupled with the processor, thememory comprising executable instructions that when executed by theprocessor cause the processor to effectuate operations comprising:receiving a first request associated with a cloud storage, wherein thefirst request comprises a minimum number of local discs; responsive toreceiving the first request, determining whether to engage a storagebroker, wherein the determining whether to engage the storage brokercomprises determining whether a storage implementation exists that cansupport the first request; and in response to a nonexistence of thestorage implementation, engaging the storage broker, and creating, bythe storage broker, a new storage implementation on the server tosupport the first request.
 11. The system of claim 10, furtheroperations comprising: receiving a second request associated with thecloud storage; responsive to receiving the second request, determiningwhether to engage a storage manager, wherein the storage manager altersan existing storage implementation, wherein the determining whether toengage the storage manager comprises determining resource availabilityof a plurality of nodes to accommodate the second request; based on theresource availability of the existing storage implementation, engagingthe storage manager and altering the existing storage implementation ona first node of the plurality of nodes; and receiving informationcomprising the status of the existing storage implementation.
 12. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein the first request comprises a minimumreplication of a volume.
 13. The system of claim 10, wherein the newstorage implementation comprises redundant array of independent disks(RAID), just a bunch of disks (JBOD), or Ceph.
 14. The system of claim10, wherein the first request comprises a minimum number of storagepools.
 15. The system of claim 10, wherein the information comprises anumber of logical volumes created in the existing storageimplementation.
 16. The system of claim 10, wherein the altering of theexisting storage implementation comprises creating a logical volume atthe storage implementation that is based on information from the secondrequest.
 17. A method comprising: receiving, by a provisioning device, afirst request associated with a cloud storage from a mobile device,wherein the first request comprises a minimum number of local discs;responsive to receiving the first request, determining whether to engagea storage broker, wherein the determining whether to engage the storagebroker or the storage manager comprises determining, by the provisioningdevice, whether a storage implementation exists that can support thefirst request; and in response to a nonexistence of the storageimplementation, engaging the storage broker, and creating, by thestorage broker, a new storage implementation to support the firstrequest.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first request comprisesa minimum replication of a volume.
 19. The method of claim 17, whereinthe first request new storage implementation comprises redundant arrayof independent disks (RAID), just a bunch of disks (JBOD), or Ceph. 20.The method of claim 17, further comprising providing the information tothe mobile device for display.